


No time to die

by Alch



Category: ONEWE (Band)
Genre: Angst, Angst with a Happy Ending, Gen, Gunshot Wounds, Resistance!AU, Suicide thoughts, escaping, not related to any mental illness
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2021-03-09
Updated: 2021-03-09
Packaged: 2021-03-16 02:47:29
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,281
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/29943321
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Alch/pseuds/Alch
Summary: «Hyung, please. Please. Hyung! Hyung please… please...»Hyungu’s voice sounds like a broken record, repeating the same few words as he shakes Yonghoon’s shoulder more violently, panic running through his veins.«You have to wake up, you have to,» he goes on as if his hyung could hear him. «I can’t do it by myself, I can’t get us to safety by myself, I can’t-»
Relationships: Kang Hyungu | Kanghyun & Jin Yonghoon, Mention of Jin Yonghoon and his babies, ONEWE Ensamble
Comments: 2
Kudos: 15





	No time to die

**Author's Note:**

> I promise this is not as bad as it looks like >/////<

«Hyung, please. Please. Hyung! Hyung please… please...»

Hyungu’s voice sounds like a broken record, repeating the same few words as he shakes Yonghoon’s shoulder more violently, panic running through his veins. 

«You have to wake up, you _have to_ ,» he goes on as if his hyung could hear him. «I can’t do it by myself, I can’t get us to safety by myself, I can’t-»

His voice breaks and Hyungu stops talking because he feels the tears ready to come out and he can’t cry, not right now, not with only a wall separating them from their enemies. He needs to find a way out, he needs to keep Yonghoon safe, he can’t let his emotions make him weaker.

After laying his hyung down on the floor, his torn jacket as a pillow to protect Yonghoon’s head, Hyungu runs to the door and blocks it with a metal bar miraculously found in a corner and lets out a deep sigh of relief. That way they will be safe at least for a few minutes, the time he needs to come out with a solution. Because he _needs_ to find one, he can’t let Yonghoon (or himself) die like that. Not like that.

«As soon as you wake up we will talk about how important it is for _everyone_ , aka you, to actually _follow_ the plan we make instead of improvising some random rescue mission in the middle of an incursion just because you saw what? A lost puppy? That’s why I don’t like bringing you or Myeong on this kind of mission, hyung!»

Hyungu knows he’s talking with himself but somehow imagining Yonghoon listening to him helps him calm down. How many people were following them? How many did they hit before Yonghoon fell down? Because after that Hyungu’s only mission became taking Yonghoon away from the danger, saving his life, taking him home safe and sound.

«There should be still at least a dozen of them after us. Hyung, this is not good,» Hyungu realizes with a bitter smile. Not good at all. There’s no way he can get rid of all the enemies by himself - he probably doesn’t even have enough ammunition for all of them.

Hyungu goes to check his weapon. The semi-automatic gun he’s using has only four bullets left and the one Yonghoon had fell when he was shot to the shoulder. Hyungu closes his eyes and takes a deep, slow breath. His own wound, a deep cut on his left side, hurts at the gesture. He should have taken care of it but there was no time and then the adrenaline kicking in while they were running away made him completely forget about it. Now that the pain is back, Hyungu adds his condition to the already desperate equation and the result is simple.

He won’t get out of this situation alive.

The thought hits him softer than he imagined. Maybe his mind can’t completely grasp the idea of dying, what it actually means to stop living and leave everything he did and still wants to do behind. Still, he doesn’t feel scared or sad. The cold sensation of something impossible to avoid slows everything down as if time itself had suddenly reduced its pace.

It’s the thought of Yonghoon dying that makes Hyungu choke on air. The idea of a world in which Yonghoon is not living anymore makes him lose his mind, no matter if Hyungu won’t actually experience that world. He can’t allow it.

Could he create some kind of handmade explosive out of the gunpowder contained in the last four bullets? It shouldn’t be too complicated after all, Hyungu thinks, imagining the different steps he would have to follow to actually do it. But still, even if he had enough time for all that, how many of his pursuers would be injured by the explosion? He wouldn’t take all of them down for sure, and then he wouldn’t have any other weapon left to defend himself and Yonghoon.

Hyungu looks at Yonghoon still laying down unconscious. He looks so fragile now, so different from the bold person he usually is when he’s awake, ready to lift everyone’s mood, even in the most serious and worrying scenarios. Hyungu can almost hear him joking about the deadly situation they are in now and even like that the thought of it cracks a smile on his lips.

«How will we come out of this uh, hyung?» he murmurs, getting closer to Yonghoon and sitting by his side.

The shoulder that got shot hasn’t stopped bleeding no matter how tight Hyungu bandaged it. Yonghoon’s pale face is a clear sign that the blood loss is severe - weren’t they followed by those people, could he actually survive it? The more Hyungu looks at the wound the less he can believe it. Maybe there is no way out of it no matter the situation, maybe they are doomed for real this time.

A loud, deep noise outside the room Hyungu barricaded them in startles him and makes him look away from Yonghoon. They must be searching for them, they must be close. And Hyungu has no solution to save their lives. They are about to die and Hyungu can’t think of any smart idea to save their asses. 

«And you keep sleeping, hyung! In the most important moment, you’re sleeping and leaving me alone!»

The frustration makes the first tears come out and wet Hyungu’s face. He hates this. The helplessness, the desperation he is feeling. He can’t stay calm anymore - he’s finally scared. And then, amidst all these feelings, a terrifying thought comes to Hyungu’s mind, taking his breath away. What if they catch them before the end? What if they don’t kill them but take them to their base? Both Yonghoon and Hyungu know a lot about the resistance, about their plans after all…

Suddenly the spare bullets in the gun Hyungu is holding tight have a completely different meaning. Suddenly the fear he is feeling has a whole different taste. Because if their enemies know how much information they have, to die would be a more merciful fate than to end up in their hands.

Hyungu closes his eyes, crashed down by the weight of the decision he has to make. Even though he and Yonghoon have always been the ones wanting to have the last word, making quarrels and discussions something very common between them, right now he hates to be the only one entitled to decide what to do.

He takes Yonghoon’s heavy body between his arms, not minding the blood now staining his ripped shirt as well, and lets Yonghoon’s head rest on his shoulder, hidden in the space of his neck. Then he gets the gun and points it to his hyung’s head, like a coward, because he couldn’t bear to look at Yonghoon’s face. He’s just glad that he won’t stay alive enough time to actually deal with the thought of having killed one of the people he loves the most in the whole universe.

«I’m sorry, hyung. I’m sorry I couldn’t protect you… and I’m sorry for all the times I pushed you away, all the times I joked about how deeply and openly you love me. I’m sorry that I couldn’t just say it back. I love you hyung, I love you more than my life. I’m sorry that this is happening and if I could save you, only you, and die in your place, I would do it with no second thoughts. But I don’t know how to save us. I tried, I tried so hard to find a solution, but there’s nothing I can think of except this...»

Hyungu cries with no more shame, hurt by what he’s about to do deeper than he would have imagined, deeper than any pain he has ever felt. So much that once again death seems a merciful fate.

«The babies… my… beautiful babies...»

Yonghoon's murmurs make Hyungu shiver on the spot. Only in the deep silence surrounding them, it was possible for him to hear those words and yet they seemed the loudest noise Hyungu has ever heard. The gun falls from his hand but he can’t hear the thud it makes when it hits the ground.

He forgot about the others. He forgot about Giwookie, Dongmyeong and Harin waiting for them back home. He forgot he promised the youngest to be safe and come back soon. How could he? How could he forget about the rest of their family? How could he let go of them so easily?

New sobs shake Hyungu’s small body. He can’t do it. He can’t leave the others behind, not without fighting to come back to them. What was he thinking? They wouldn’t forgive him for giving up and they would be right. 

Dying is not an option but living… is it still an option?

«You know what, hyung? I take it back. I’m not sorry for teasing you and playing hard. I’ll make you pay for leaving me alone in such a shitty situation, you’ll see!»

Holding Yonghoon tight against his chest, Hyungu grabs the gun again, now pointing it toward the bolted door. He doesn’t have a solution, he doesn’t know how they will make it out of there alive, he just knows that he won’t die without putting out a fight. For Yonghoon he swore to protect, for his brothers waiting for them to come back and for himself. And if he has to die he will die holding one of the most precious things he has, as it should be.

With an arm crossing Yonghoon’s back and his chin over his dirty but still soft hair, Hyungu waits, majestic, a wild wounded beast ready to give it all to protect the one it loves. Time seems to stop, struck by the power Hyungu holds, by his sudden steadiness. For a few seconds nothing happens, even the noises outside the door stop and the silence celebrates the sublime sight displaying in front of it.

Then a burst. Dust and concrete fill the air with violence, blinding Hyungu and making him choke. He doesn’t move though, nor he shivers. His hand still holds the gun pointed at the enemies even if he can’t see them, even when his head starts spinning because of the blood loss and all the dust he’s choking on.

Hyungu fights with all his might when he feels he’s about to lose consciousness. He can’t pass out, not because there is a chance he won’t wake up again, but because of what could await him and Yonghoon if they wake up in the enemies’ hands. But everything hurts and Yonghoon’s body against his chest is so heavy, it brings Hyungu down.

The last thing Hyungu hears is a scream. He recognizes it and that’s why he knows he’s already hallucinating, because it’s Dongmyeong’s voice.

***

Pain is the first thing Hyungu feels. Even before realizing he is waking up, there’s pain. Excruciating, devastating pain. It’s so overwhelming that Hyungu doesn’t realize he is screaming till someone right next to him shushes him in a gentle tone.

«I’m sorry, I know it hurts,» the voice says, «But there’s no other way,»

Hyungu doesn’t understand what he is talking about - he, because the one talking is a male voice - and surely those words don’t help him feel better. He wants to open his eyes and see what’s going on, but his eyelids feel too heavy to be lifted and he gives up after a few tries.

He can’t think straight, the pain and the confusion making everything too much. Only one thought comes out of his mouth.

«Yonghoon...hyung...»

The words are nothing more and a whisper and for some moments Hyungu wonders if he actually pronounced them. But the voice comes back, clearer this time.

«Hyung is actually well, considering the way we found him!» it says. «It’s you the one concerning us, you know?»

Only then Hyungu recognizes the one talking. How could he miss it?

«Ha- ...rin.»

«Yeah, who else? I’m trying to patch you up, but damn you made a mess!»

«What…?»

«The bullet that hit you for some reason shattered and we are still trying to take all the fragments out of the wound. But we don’t have painkillers or anything to make this easy for you. Sorry, hyung...»

Dongmyeong’s voice comes from his other ear and Hyungu tries to shift in his direction. A gentle stroke on his head makes him realize that Dongmyeong saw his attempt.

«But you trust us hyung, right? We will fix this mess no matter what!»

That’s Giwookie, full of hope and positive thoughts as always. Giwookie, who brought so much joy to Hyungu’s world. 

«Gi...wook...ie… See…? I came back,» he says. He kept his promise and Yonghoon made it too.

«Yeah, you did. And now it’s our turn to keep ours and make you feel better soon, okay?»

Giwook’s voice shakes and almost breaks on the last words. Hyungu can hear that even in his state and it hurts more than his wound. That’s why he smiles, gathering all the courage he has left, for him.

«I have no doubt. I trust you, I know you’ll put me back together and on my feet.»

And he isn’t lying. He does trust his family, he knows they will save him no matter what, that they will make it one way or the other. That’s probably why he can relax and even though he feels his consciousness slipping from his hands again, this time he’s not scared. After all, he is in the safest place he knows.

  
  


**Author's Note:**

> So, would you believe me if I told you that all this is born from the "[OFF THE RECORD] STUDIO WE LIVE #6 behind"? I saw the part of the shooting where Hyungu was holding Yonghoon's head and bam, in a second I had this scene in mind lol So I immediately wrote it down and avoided imagining a more detailed context because I was scared this idea would turn into yet another long-fic I would never finish and here we are.  
> Maybe I can try to add more moments from this AU with other shots like this, creating a series... I'll think about it in case this fic was good enough to deserve more words!
> 
> till then, I hope you enjoyed it~ Thank you for paying it some attention and to the next time~ 
> 
> Alch ([Kira](https://twitter.com/_alch3m)) ♥


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